How does personalized feedback on carbon emissions impact intended climate action?

Yu Luo, Brynley Hanson-Wright, Hadi Dowlatabadi and Jiaying Zhao ()
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Yu Luo: University of British Columbia
Brynley Hanson-Wright: University of British Columbia
Hadi Dowlatabadi: University of British Columbia
Jiaying Zhao: University of British Columbia

Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, 2025, vol. 27, issue 2, No 37, 3593-3607

Abstract: Abstract Carbon emissions associated with individual choices are difficult to conceptualize and seldom considered in daily decision making. We examine the impact of personalized feedback on carbon emissions on intended climate action. In a pre-registered experiment (N = 790), participants reported their consumption in 2019 and received personalized feedback on carbon emissions and recommendations for reduction in the feedback condition, or no feedback in the control condition. Subsequently, all participants indicated their consumption intentions in 2023, which was one year from the year the experiment was conducted. After receiving feedback, participants showed a significant emission reduction of 1.42tCO2e (− 12.60%) per capita between 2019 and 2023, whereas those in the control condition increased their emissions by 0.05tCO2e (+ 0.045%). Importantly, there was no impact on intentions to engage in civic climate action. Civic climate intentions were instead associated with eco-guilt and climate concerns. These findings suggest personalized feedback has the potential to reduce carbon emissions without impacting civic climate intentions, providing implications for strategies to encourage climate action.

Keywords: Climate change; Behavior change; System change; Eco-guilt; Carbon footprint (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s10668-023-04031-0

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